With not much going on in the NHL in terms of hockey, Outside The Garden has shifted focus to the minor leagues, juniors and Europe. We will take a month by month look at the Rangers prospects and give grades based on who is doing what and where, plus we’ll throw a little information in there beyond the statistics as we find it. With Europe and Canadian Juniors already starting, we can jump right into..
THE PROSPECTS
| On The Rise | |
| Zdenek Bahensky 2GP 2-1-3 4 PIM | Drafted first overall in the CHL import draft, the Blades are looking to Bahensky to help turn around their fortunes. The 18 year old forward has started well with goals in each of his first two games in North America |
| Ryan Callahan 2GP 1-1-2 6 PIM | Callahan finished up at the US junior training camp and returned to Guelph where he was awarded the captaincy of the Storm. Callahan followed up the honor with a first star performance in his second game of the season, scoring the game tying goal with 26 seconds left in regulation. |
| Nigel Dawes 4GP 2-2-4 0 PIM | Another Ranger prospect who received the captaincy honors from his team (Kootenay), Dawes also signed a pro contract with New York prior to the lockout. Though not selected to attend the Wolf Pack training camp, Dawes has started the season solidly with four points in four games and a first star performance in his third game of the season. |
| Bruce Graham 5GP 3-2-5 8 PIM | As a second round pick and a forward in the high scoring QMJHL, he will be expected to put in a lot of goals this season. The 6’5″ centerman has started the year well, centering the second line and putting up three goals in his first five games. |
| Mike Green 4GP 2-2-4 10 PIM | The Rangers couldn’t get Green signed, but they did make the appropriate qualifying offer before he headed to Europe to play in the German league. Green appears to have favored the move, picking up a point a game in the early going and managed a misconduct in his last game…for what, we’re not sure. |
| Sven Helfenstein 5GP 3-2-5 6 PIM | Chances of Helfenstein ever playing in the NHL remain pretty slim, but the Swiss native and 7th round pick from 2000 appears to suddenly have found his offensive touch. With a career high of just 5 goals and 12 points (2003), Helfenstein has exploded to a point a game pace through the first five games of the season for ZSC. |
| Jarkko Immonen 6GP 2-6-8 0 PIM | Immonen has been centering the second line at JYP for the most part, playing second fiddle to NHL veteran Steve Martins. After an indifferent preseason, Immonen has exploded out of the gate and is among the offensive leaders in the SM-Liiga. |
| Marcus Jonasen 1GP 0-0-0 0 PIM | Jonasen was made captain of the Tri-City Americans late this summer and received high praise for his leadership from the Americans’ coach. Invited to the Hartford Wolf Pack training camp, Jonasen has added two goals in the daily scrimmages, but will likely return to Tri-City this weekend. |
| Lauri Korpikoski 6GP 0-2-2 2 PIM | As an 18 year old, there was some question as to whether Korpikoski would manage to secure a spot on the TPS roster. He not only made the team, but he has been playing on the third line and even has had some second line duty. |
| Henrik Lundqvist 3GP 2-1-0 .946 1.69 | After impressing last year with a breakout season, Lundqvist has started his 2004-05 campaign equally hot. Despite the influx of NHL talent to the SEL, Lundqvist has managed to turn away 87 of his first 92 shots, picking up two wins in the process. |
| Jonathan Paiement 3GP 1-5-6 12 PIM | Like Graham, Paiement will be expected to put up some big numbers this year in the “Q”. As a 19 year old veteran on the Maineiacs, Paiement gets plenty of ice time and has started the year with 6 points in his first 3 games |
| Jakub Petruzalek 2GP 0-3-3 0 PIM | The Ottawa 67s wanted Lukas Kaspar on their team and were told that Petruzalek would have to come as part of the deal. Paired together on the first line for Ottawa, Petruzalek has already taken advantage of playing with his more heralded linemate…getting two of his three assists on a Kaspar hattrick. |
| Holding Steady | |
| Ivan Baranka 2GP 1-0-1 8 PIM | The last player signed to a pro contract by the Rangers before the season started, Baranka is looking to make some noise this season and get a spot on the Wolf Pack roster next season. He started the campaign with a power play goal in the Silvertips opener. |
| Dane Byers 3GP 0-0-0 13 PIM | Byers may not have scored, but he’s certainly been well represented on the penalty sheet in his first three games of the season. |
| Brandon Dubinsky 2GP 0-0-0 13 PIM | Seen my many as one of the better prospects coming out of this draft, Dubinsky will be looking to improve on his career high 78 points last season to go along with his 137 penalty minutes. |
| Philippe Furrer 5GP 0-0-0 2 PIM | Furrer missed the entire season with injury last year, so the fact that he’s even playing this season is a bonus. Still Furrer has had a slow start to the season in terms of offense for SC Bern and so we consider him to be “Holding Steady” |
| Ilya Gorokhov 10GP 2-3-5 8 PIM | Ilya who? Yes, this 1995 pick is still technically in the system and is playing for Yaroslavl Lokomotiv. The 27 year old defenseman is almost certainly not going to come to North America, but we figured we’d include for the sake of being thorough. |
| Jan Marek 5GP 0-3-3 2 PIM | Both Marek and Prucha negotiated late into the summer with the Rangers over the possibility of coming to North America. The prospect of playing in the AHL proved to be the financial stumbling block for Marek. The 24 year old 8th round pick (2003) has a lot to live up to after breaking out with Sparta Praha last season. |
| Ales Pisa 5GP 2-1-3 4 PIM | Pisa is now playing for Cherepovets Severstal in the Russian Super League and appears to be at least making an offensive impression in his second year of his stint in Russia. |
| Roman Psurny 2GP 0-1-1 2 PIM | An unheralded start to the season for Psurny should allow the Czech to ease himself into play in North America. |
| Martin Richter 6GP 0-0-0 4 PIM | Managed to make it onto the starting roster for Sparta Praha so perhaps still has something to offer. |
| On The Decline | |
| Ivan Dornic 1GP 0-0-0 0 PIM | There was some question as to whether Dornic would return to the CHL this year, but last minute negotiations with the Czech club that held his rights secured his position on the Winterhawks. Dornic however, was a healthy scratch in Portland’s last game. |
| Kim Hirschovits 6GP 0-1-1 2 PIM | This is probably a make or break year for the young Finnish pivot, after doing little since being drafted in 2002. Despite centering the second line for HIFK, Hirschovits has made little impression through the first two weeks of the season |
| Matt Kinch 3GP 0-0-0 0 PIM | The Rangers qualified the former Calgary Hitman defender, but with a crowded blueline in Hartford this season Kinch elected to go to Austria and try his hand with Salzburg. Unable to find his offensive touch in the AHL, Kinch has continued to struggle in what should be a much easier league. |
| Aarto Laatikainen 6GP 0-0-0 4 PIM | Another prospect probably unlikely to ever make it to North America, Laatikainen has been unable to follow up his moderately successful season last year with Espoo Blues of the SM-Liiga in Finland. |
| Petr Prucha 6GP 0-1-1 0 PIM | After impressing at the World Championships earlier in the year, it seemed as if Prucha was ready to break out. Unfortunately for him the NHL lockout happened and Prucha has found himself relegated to 4th line duty. |
| Injured | |
| Dan Blackburn Injured in 2003 | More bad news for Blackburn who continues to make his way back from nerve damage in his shoulder. The next evaluation will be done on Blackburn around Christmas this year, meaning he won’t return this calendar year and may have the season in jeopardy once again. |
| Garth Murray In training camp | Murray has had a string of injuries since turning pro in 2002, his bad luck continued this week with a broken thumb that will keep him out 4-6 weeks and is likely to cause him to miss 4-6 AHL regular season games |
| Richard Scott Injured in 2003 | Remains out of action with concussion like symptoms |
| Suspended | |
| Rick Kozak 2GP 0-0-0 6 PIM | A run-in with the Everett Silvertips trainer cost Kozak a 15 game suspension this week and continues a run of less than stellar incidents for the young winger. |
| Other Notes | |
| Jozef Balej | Appears to have almost slipped away to Skalica of the Slovak league, but somehow the Rangers have stepped in and convinced Balej to remain in North America…at least for the time being |
| Blair Betts | Signed a contract with the Wolf Pack to get around the NHL lockout |
| Lee Falardeau | Signed a pro contract, leaving Michigan State a year early. Will try to win a job on the Hartford Wolf Pack to begin the season |
| Jordan Foote | Joined Michigan Tech a year early |
| Alexandre Giroux | Leads all players in scoring during the Wolf Pack training camp with 3 goals and an additional 2 shootout goals |
| Nate Guenin | Rugged defenseman received one of the A’s for Ohio State and was given an honorable mention in the CCHA preseason polls. |
| Hugh Jessiman | Was elected to the ECAC preseason first team by the media |
| Dwight Helminen | Signed a pro contract, leaving Michigan a year early. Will try to win a job on the Hartford Wolf Pack to begin the season |
| Maxim Kondratiev | Is attending training camp in Hartford, but has the option to return to Russia 30 days into the regular season |
| Jason Labarbera | Signed a contract with the Wolf Pack to get around the NHL lockout |
| Al Montoya | Declined the option to sign a pro contract and leave Michigan two years early, in return the Wolverines have made Montoya an alternate for the team. Was also selected to the CCHA preseason first team |
| Darin Olver | Selected to the CCHA preseason first team |
| Jed Ortmeyer | Signed a contract with the Wolf Pack to get around the NHL lockout |
| Billy Ryan | Will join Maine this season and will be eligible for games December 28th |
| Jake Taylor | Signed a pro contract, leaving Minnesota three years early. Will try to win a job on the Hartford Wolf Pack to begin the season |
| Mike Walsh | Also received an A for Notre Dame and figures to be the offensive leader on the Fighting Irish this season. |